ditch the diet drama, how to spot sketchy fad diets 👀
It's totally understandable why shiny, "quick-fix" fad diets look super tempting. When you're struggling with body image or your relationship with food, the allure of immediate weight loss can be powerful.
Think classics like keto, intermittent fasting, juice detoxing, and Whole30.
But here's the deal: while they might promise you the moon and stars, these trendy diets often do more harm than good. Let's dig in!
how to spot a fad diet (aka, your red flag radar 🚩)
money-driven
Does the diet insist you fork over cash for a subscription, expensive supplements, or a super-secret rulebook to unlock "hidden" nutrition wisdom? That's a HUGE sign it's probably more obsessed with profit than actually helping you achieve sustainable healthy eating.
too good to be true promises
Big, bold claims like "lose 20 pounds in 2 weeks!" sounds pretty wild, right? How can someone guarantee results without knowing your unique body, your lifestyle, or even your favorite snack? These promises feel less like science and more like clickbait.
the dreaded r-word: restriction!
Does the diet demand you ditch entire food groups or essential nutrients like carbs (gasp!), fats, or proteins? Meeting your nutritional needs can already feel like a challenge. Cutting out food options makes feeding ourselves harder than parallel parking with an audience... while blindfolded 😫. This type of restrictive eating is a hallmark of many harmful diets.
"but my coworker loves it!" so, what's the big deal?
It's true, some people swear by them! But here's the scoop: Fad diets are usually super restrictive, and that can really mess with your relationship with food.
They tend to pile on the guilt around eating and push an unhelpful "all-or-nothing" mindset. Plus, let's be real, are they actually sustainable in the long run? (spoiler…no).
In a bit of a plot twist, many folks who try diets actually end up gaining back more weight than they initially lost. This rollercoaster of losing and regaining weight, lovingly called "yo-yo dieting," can bring on both physical and emotional stress. Oof!
We totally get the allure of fad diets, especially if you're not feeling great about your body or if all the health advice out there feels like a chaotic mess. We see you, FaceBook groups!
Fad diets zoom into popularity faster than viral internet challenges. But here’s the thing, the quicker something becomes popular, the more critical we need to be in evaluating it. As registered dietitians, this is something we absolutely love helping people with!
what to do instead (your superpower steps!)
Keep an eye out for those red flags! Ask yourself these three simple questions to help figure out if something is a sneaky fad diet:
Is it asking me for money? 💰
Is it giving me an unrealistic promise? 🦄
Is it asking me to restrict essential nutrients and foods I love? 🙅♀️
If you answered "YES!" to any of those, we encourage you to pause and reconsider.
For even more awesome insights, we adore the books Anti-Diet and The Wellness Trap by Christy Harrison. They dive deep into the fascinating science behind diet culture and offer a compassionate and eye-opening perspective about the whole diet industry. Give 'em a read!
If you’re still scratching your head about whether something's a fad diet, you can always ask a registered dietitian about it! We're here to help you navigate the wild world of wellness and we take health insurance.
Click here to see a dietitian (aka, fad diet debunkers). Ask us about your health insurance coverage here.
Written by Andrea Peller + Aby S. Fewel
Registered Dietitian Nutritionists